“No Reply” is the opening cut on Piers Faccini’s new album, My Wilderness, recorded at his home in southern France and released in September 2011 via Tôt ou Tard. The video is an acoustic rendition of the song, taken off the film “A New Morning” by Jeremiah and Piers Faccini.
As a little extra, listen to the album’s title track just below…
For more info, check out Faccini’s official site or MySpace. Buy his new album My Wilderness on
Based in the Western suburbs of Paris, Julie Hanse is a (very) young singer songwriter whose heartfelt compositions and powerful voice belie her age. Ever since she was fourteen, she has been writing songs and posting them on YouTube and in the past year or so she has performed at many festivals, even sharing stage with Canadian songstress Julie Doiron and Lithuanian folk sensation Alina Orlova.
Equally influenced by Mumford & Sons, Cat Power and Johnny Cash, Julie feels most at home on a stage with her guitar. With confidence and maturity well beyond her years, she electrifies the audience and delivers raw emotions that resonate within each and every listener.
Follow Julie on Facebook or MySpace. Stream her music on SoundCloud.
Canadian singer/pianist Béatrice Martin, better known as Coeur de Pirate, released her much-anticipated sophomore release, Blonde, on November 8th via Grosse Boite Records. This new record is bouncier and more upbeat than the young chanteuse’s previous effort, giving plenty of room for seeping strings arrangements and jazzy big band elements. The first single is the lively retro pop number “Adieu”, which you can sample below.
If you dig this sound, check out Coeur de Pirate’s collaborations with Peter Peter and Bedouin Soundclash and listen to her heartfelt cover of The Weeknd’s song “Wicked Games”, recorded in her home studio a couple of months ago.
For more info, find Coeur de Pirate on Facebook or check out her official site. Buy the album on BandCamp or
Since the beginning of her career almost ten years ago, French chanteuse Camille (born Camille Dalmais) has relentlessly explored the possibilities of modern music with her innovative and unconventional songs. Her past two albums – the platinum-selling French-language breakthrough Le Fil (2005), and its beat-boxy bilingual follow-up Music Hole (2008) – pitted the Parisian performer against the percussive sounds of her own body. Camille’s restless, inventive voice was perfectly enhanced by the gleeful blizzard of clicks, snaps, gulps and claps that she and her then producer, Birmingham-born beatboxer MaJiKer, created to accompany them.
On her self-produced fourth solo album Ilo Veyou, Dalmais continues her musical exploration but MaJiKer is gone. She recorded most of the album in vast spaces with distinctive acoustic qualities – including various churches and abbeys – filling them with playful songs that reflect her current state of mind. “I recorded it in a quiet, serene environment”, she explains, “and it’s a very live, acoustic album about musical moments. It’s very folky and it takes its time, that’s what I would say”.
Arrangements are sparse throughout the album, which may be due to the fact that Camille decided to go back to basics and record all 15 tracks in single takes. Most of Ilo Veyou finds the songstress simply backed by a string quartet and a Brass band and the result is an album that is dazzling in its naked emotion.
As a bonus, you will find a Disco-tinged remix of Camille’s 2009 single “Home Is Where It Hurts”. Produced by David Rubato this complete reinterpretation of the track is as unexpected as it is brilliant!
To find out more about Camille on her official site or go to MySpace. All her music is available online at Amazon or
Mixing smooth and soulful vocals with stunning melodies, singer/songwriter Emma Shaheen is the latest secret of the UK’s independent music scene. At 27, the young artist has already managed to release a handful of singles and appear at gigs and festivals up and down the country, scoring support slots for Daniel Bedingfield and Corinne Bailey Rae.
First heard with Leeds-based nu-jazz band Today’s Mathematics when she was just 17, Shaheen was featured on the band’s single “Butterfly”, played on Radio 1 and acclaimed by music guru Trevor Nelson. After Mathematics disbanded in 2005, she took her first steps as a solo artist with the single “Perfume”, produced by Homecut and released on First Word Records.
With her new self-released EP, The Life Is, Emma Shaheen showcases her graceful singing and efficient songwriting. The record’s opener, hip hop infused “Life is beautiful”, received high praise on the BBC’s Raw Talent radio show and the song “Play On” is in line with Shaheen’s more acoustic compositions.
She is currently working on a few new songs with younger brother Joel for her yet-untitled debut album. The siblings are planning to record this new material over the summer and Emma is already in talks with a major label so we can maybe hope for an album before the end of the year… Keep an ear out!
For more info and tunes, check out Emma’s official site or listen to her music on SoundCloud. You can buy The Life Is and new single “Falling For You” on Bandcamp.